karykeion

Ooh. Dragon's blood on its own is bad on me, and I don't really like cinnamon, but I've had a good experience with dragon's blood and spice. Hmmmmmmm. In the imp: CINNAMON and dragon's blood and clove. On me, wet: Ooh, this feels really warm to me. I think the pepper and clove are doing a good job of rounding out the dragon's blood so it doesn't do that chalky-sweet thing that dragon's blood does on my skin. As far as dragon's blood blends go, I think this is my favorite so far, even with the cinnamon. The spices fill in that dragon's blood chalkiness and turn it into a blazing warm blend that, to me, smells like the essence of fire--but not actual fire or smoke. On me, dry: I think this might be my favorite of the dragon's blood blends I've tried. It's a pleasantly warm, spicy scent that, while not really my thing, I enjoyed trying. And now I know that dragon's blood can smell really nice when other notes are involved!

In the imp: Getting jasmine, incense, and bergamot. I don't really like heavily incensey scents, but this is nice, as those go! On me, wet: Smoke and incense, moss, and patchouli. It's a very purple scent to me. As it dries, I get more of the florals--mostly iris and !!jasmine!!, but full of incense notes. For some reason, this doesn't come off as a headshop to me and smells more like a really smoky forest? But in a "hanging out in the magical woods" way, not in a "forest fire" way On me, dry: It's really not my type of the perfume, but I think I'll keep the imp around, because I actually like it. I like BPAL's forest and moss notes, I think, and the incense lends some mystery to it. It's a dark and purple-green smoky scent. I have no idea where I'd wear it, but I'm glad I tried it.

Frimped with a recent order from...i think it was Absinthetics? Thank you!! In the imp: Woods and spice. I actually really like it. On me, wet: Very herbal and green. Wood, mint, clove, herbs, spice. I really like it. I'm not sure what, but there's something in this that reminds me a bit of The Robotic Scarab--I think it's the combination of herbs, whatever they are. It's got the same clear-glittery feel to me, but instead of being clear glittery red, it's clear glittery yellow-green. Also, I think there's a bit of musk in this, but it doesn't feel like it's taking over the blend, which is a really pleasant surprise. It's like a slightly musky combination of elements of The Robotic Scarab and Block Buster. On me, dry: Musky herbal green woody sweetness. Very nice!

This was one of the boatload of beautiful frimps gifted to me with my first ever order. Oh, memories. In the imp: Rum, plums, currant, and ginger. More foody than I normally wear, but why not? On me, wet: Freaking lovely combination of ginger and plums. This was the blend that helped me realize that while I do not like ginger in food, in perfumes it is absolutely lovely on me. I'm not a huge fan of cinnamon, but it's nice in here--honestly, this is kind of a holiday scent to me? Something I'd wear to a Christmas party. I like the addition of the rum note here, too, as an enthusiastic lover of sweet girly drinks. On me, dry: Fades pretty quickly, but the ginger and plum stick around faintly. I like the earlier stages better, but it's a very sweet slightly-spicy blend that would go well with a cold winter day.

In the imp: Oh my god, this is so pretty! Herbs and mint! It's like sniffing an herb garden! On me, wet: MINT and some lime. And then all the herbs come out! It's really interesting...for all of half an hour, after which it's pretty much gone. It's a nice, soft grassy herbal scent that puts me less in the mind of all-consuming jealousy and more in the mind of sticking my nose into a window garden and getting a nice little whiff of the combination of herbs therein. As such, it's actually kind of a comforting scent. On me, dry: A nice little herb garden close to the skin, with not much throw at all. It's not exactly straight-up gone, but it's not very there. Still, what I could smell, while not bottle-worthy, was a surprisingly nice little green scent and I'm glad I got to try it.

In the imp: It's okay? I mean, it's a very pretty scent, but...eh. It's flowers. On me, wet: Fresh cut flowers! Lilies and roses dominate. I don't really smell much carnation, and I'm getting something kind of herbal in the background. I guess objectively I like it, but, like Prague, it's just kind of a flower overload to my nose. It smells like exquisitely lovely scented soap. On me, dry: Okay, some note in here really doesn't agree with me, because I swear it turned into fried chicken. I don't know how that could even happen. Wow. Not a keeper.

The description tempted my spice-cabinet-smell-loving soul so badly. I hope it smells as great as it sounds! In the imp: That sure does smell like a lot of things! Not sure I like it or dislike it just yet, it just has a lot going on. On me, wet: Oh...oh...I think I've found my spice cabinet scent! The sharp medicinal quality mellows out and leaves this splendid array of herbs backed by frankincense, and it's delicious and kind of sexy. On me, dry: Hmm. Not sure if want. I like it. It's spicy and sexy, but I think it's a little bit sharp? I could see it being one of those scents that I don't immediately fall for, but that I then just keep reaching for. I'll keep it around and see how I feel about it.

I've already fallen hard for two of the Arkham scents, and I couldn't not try the one that shares my kitty's name. In the imp: Utter perfection. It smells like darkness and the wind before a storm. I want every single man in the world to smell like this. It even has some of that gorgeous array of spices that I love and wish every perfume consisted of. On me, wet: Spicy dark sweet incense and something a little tangy, which I guess is the ozone, but then it starts to turn to...lemon Pledge? This goes through a lot of weird phases. When it gets done smelling like lemon Pledge, it kind of mellows out into what I swear to god is the exact scent of burnt cookies. On me, dry: I think on the right person, this would smell like dark malicious ancient madness and sex. On me, it smells like burnt cookies. No. I was really hoping to love this, but I think I'll pass it along to someone whose chemistry agrees with it more.

I have so many lovely aquatics to try In the imp: I smell flowers, and that note that never smells like the ocean to me in the imp but that I know will turn into beautiful salty marine goodness when it touches me. On me, wet: The marine transformation takes its sweet old time, but when it does, that initial yucky "should be the ocean" note blooms into a gorgeous, almost humid scent that's so perfectly evocative of the beach that I cannot keep my nose away from my arm. I've never been to New Orleans, but I live in Georgia and I have had a lot of experience with humidity; that said, I swear this actually smells humid. It smells like walking down the street in a touristy beachside city and smelling flowers and the sea while breathing in the salty humid air. I can pick out jasmine and not much else on the floral side. On me, dry: Never having visited New Orleans, I can only say that this is the beach. This is me and my family walking down the road to dinner by the beach, getting sand in our toes, at twilight, when all the lights are starting to come on in the little town and all the stars are coming out in the sky. If I need a floral scent, this is it. It's going immediately on the bottle list, and it's going to be my classy-evening-out scent for the summer. I love it.

The initial phases of Cordelia knocked me on my butt with love so hard that I think I'll give this a chance. I don't really see myself as a floral person, but I've had luck with them before, especially with lily. In the imp: One of those gentle, sweet florals that make me go "Awww!" upon opening them. I think I can pick out the lilies and a little bit of crocus. On me, wet: Oh, that smells so cute! I'm starting to think I amp lily just a little bit, because they almost kind of took over in Ulalume and they seem to be yelling here. This is good, though, because lilies apparently really like me and smell gorgeous and light and sweet! The crocus comes out a little more after that. It's such a pretty smell! I'm even kind of getting a grassy feel from it? It really doesn't smell like floral perfume as much as it smells like actual legit springtime flowers. On me, dry: A gorgeous, sweet, happy, delicate springtime lily with some crocus to give it variety. I'm not sure it's really my thing, and for a lily scent I'm going to stick with Ulalume for now, but if I were a flowerier person I'd adore this, and I think it's convinced me to look for more lily stuff.

I have really, really been looking forward to this and I don't know why. I don't really have any Feelings about coconut or patchouli, but this seemed like something I would like, so here goes. In the imp: This really reminds me of something and I'm not sure what. I think I've eaten something before that reminds me of this. On me, wet: Holy patchouli, Batman. The coconut mixed a lot better in the imp. It kind of just smells like being out in the woods, which is really nice, and that particular scent is captured perfectly, but I was hoping for the coconut to do something more interesting. On me, dry: Oh, the coconut came back out! I thought the patchouli was going to dominate this the whole time, but it didn't. I don't think it's the kind of thing I'd normally wear, but it's a very quirky oil that really does put me in mind of a tricky, earthy little spirit that might steal your socks or hide your hairbrush. Truth be told, it sort of makes me think of/feel like a Miyazaki being, like a Totoro or kodama or susuwatari. I'm not sure I need a bottle, but I'll get a lot of use out of the imp.

I will straight up admit that I am kind of trying this as a joke. Musk smells absolutely terrible on me and dragon's blood puts a friend in mind of bathroom cleaner, and I don't really like cinnamon, so this review is kind of just my way of saying "BRING IT ON." In the imp: Smoky dragon's blood. I can't smell the red musk, but I couldn't smell it in Snake Oil either before it demolished me. On me, wet: Yep, dragon's blood. I actually really like the patchouli in this! There's something making it sort of smoky-angry and I'm not sure what that is. I guess it's the vetiver, but I can't be sure since I haven't tried enough vetiver blends to pick it out. It's already starting to do the candied-red-hots thing that dragon's blood does, and the cinnamon note isn't helping that. I think it's a good blend, but dragon's blood is just not my friend. I can't believe this, but the red musk actually doesn't appear to be messing with anything. Go figure! On me, dry: What the...it's...not bad? The musk isn't yelling everything else down and instead is just backing up the rest of the blend, which is a kind of warm spicy subtle lovely dragon's blood scent, so I guess the dragon's blood has calmed down too? It's like the musk and the dragon's blood beat the crap out of each other on my skin and are now peacefully taking a time out, so the other notes can actually be smelled. There's something in it that smells strangely of fried chicken, like in 93 Engine, but other than that...it's not really the kind of thing I'd wear, but it's unexpectedly nice!

I'm not really a Dark And Elegant kind of person, but there's no harm in smelling like a spooky formal occasion every once in a while. Looking forward to this a lot! In the imp: Huh. Extremely sweet with a note of what reminds me of incense or a blown-out candle. It's not bad, but it's not really what I was expecting at all. On me, wet: Wow, that's really sweet, and isn't really getting any less sweet as time goes on, although the smokey and incensey notes do come out and mix with it better. It's just like sweet smoke, which is really nice, but not what I expected darkness to smell like. On me, dry: Kind of sweet incense. I'm not sure whether I like this or not. The more I smell it, the more I like it--it's kind of a powerful scent, and I think I'd need to wear it to something like a convention or a club in order to determine whether I like it, if that makes any sense. I'll definitely hold onto the imp, though.

Cthulhu didn't turn out very well on me, but I'm a hopeless Lovecraft and aquatics fan, so on this goes! Nice dreary day to do it, too. In the imp: Hmmmm uh-oh. Smells a lot like Cthulhu, but then again I didn't think Cthulhu smelled much like the ocean in the imp. On me, wet: Oh jeez that does smell like the ocean! It's like Cthulhu but a little brighter and sort of fruity. I like it! The ocean smell comes out a lot more as it dries. It's becoming this sweet, cool, salty, slightly fruity-floral sea scent that I want to wear everywhere. I just hope it doesn't turn into that weird dead ringer for shampoo that Cthulhu did. If not, it's definitely immediately going on the bottle list. On me, dry: Doesn't go shampoo. Instead, whatever note it was that reminded me of shampoo in Cthulhu takes the sea scent and makes it deep and clear. This darkens a little as it dries, but it keeps its floral-fruity note and its clear salty blue feel. I'm going to give this a full test on its own, and it may go on the bottle list. We'll see, but for now? 2 for 3 wins for the Lovecraft line.

In the imp: Immediate thought was "Leaves and sadness". It's trees, dry leaves, faint lilies, and sadness. I'm not getting any aquatic. On me, wet: Leaves and trees and awwwwwww. This might be pretentious, but since the leaves make me think of autumn, this smells to me like someone who misses the summer. The lilies have come out a lot more, and it's now this really gorgeous blend of lilies and leaves and forest and water. On me, dry: If I had to pick one girly perfume that I liked the most of everything I've tried, this would be it. I'm not so much of a fan of the lilies on their own, and they come out dominant in the end, but the trees give this beautiful sad depth to the blend and the leaves make it earthier and contrast the lilies with a kind of autumn dryness. I...I can't believe I'm saying this, but...I think I might need an imp of Arkham to death-match them. Oh my god, I know what it reminds me of! Lothlorien in winter!! Trees, leaves, white flowers, and the faintest sense of a water note from Nenya.

The last steampunk blend I tried was No. 93 Engine, and that was basically my boyfriend, so I'm looking forward to this one! In the imp: OOH. Spicy-metal amazing. This is really strange, but there's almost a floral-fruity undertone that reminds me, of all freakin' things, of Blossoms in Springtime. I have no idea what that could be, but I'm okay with this! On me, wet: This, to me, is the perfect olfactory representation of a legendarily beautiful ruby dunked in Goldschlager. I definitely smell something like cinnamon, and this is a very glittery red and clear scent to me. The leather comes out more as it starts to dry...okay, so a ruby wearing a leather jacket, drinking Goldschlager. Honestly, I really like it--it's kind of what I expected Dragon's Blood to smell like, and there's something in here that does remind me of the part of Dragon's Blood that I loved before it because horrible cinnamon chalk. It's rich red spices, metal, and a tiny bit of leather. On me, dry: I'm not sure I need a bottle, but I like it and the imp is going to go fast! It's got these two sides to it, this devil-may-care attitude from the metal and leather and this super classy air from the spice and whatever smells like dragon's blood, and it feels like it would be appropriate to wear to a smoky bar or a ritzy hotel, but not really in-between. I think this is a scent for a formal geeky event, like a masquerade ball at a convention or something.

Yes! More Lovecraft scents! The first Arkham scent I tried was the first to go on my bottle list and I LOVE aquatics, so I am really looking forward to this. In the imp: ...Cologne? Cologne and dryer sheets and sea plants. I...what? Okay. I trust you, imp. On me, wet: Huh! Plants and murky seawater! It's still kind of cologne-esque, though, which really cracks me up because the mental image I'm getting is that of Cthulhu looking all dapper for a night out or something. Basically I'm not sure whether this smells EXACTLY like the ocean or EXACTLY like cologne and dryer sheets--this is weird, but it could go either way. I think in order to find out, I'd have to go to the beach again. I'll get a second opinion from Best Friend, since I genuinely think this smells like seaweed and brine but I could see where other people would think "aftershave". On me, dry: Cherries?! I'm getting...a tiny bit of salt, some seaweed, but mostly smooth, silky, floral cherries. Or at least, every other huff. I really don't know. This is confusing me quite badly. I think I'll keep it, but I really need a second opinion--there's no way Dread Cthulhu turns to cherry and flowers on me, I have to be imagining it.

In the imp: Sharp, herby, dark, and a little bit of fruitiness that I assume is coming from the redcurrant. I like it, it sort of reminds me of Arkham. On me, wet: Oh wow, that's really unique! I'm mostly getting a sharp herbal quality and a kind of dark floral that I'm assuming is the violet, as I've never actually stopped to smell one before. It really does smell like moss, too; this is the first time I've ever been able to pick that note out, and I quite like it even if it's not really a thing I'd buy a bunch of blends with. And now the redcurrant is coming out to play, and it's balancing out the herbaliness of the moss with this really nice kind of dark fruity-floral quality. As it dries, I think it gets kind of soapy, which is a shame because I really love this moss note. It legit smells like the rivers where my family and I go fishing. How did I miss this in Phoenix at Dusk? For shame! On me, dry: ...Why does this smell aquatic to me? Other than that, it's a little powdery, I think, but that moss note I adore is still there so it's somewhere between "so powdery I can't stand it", "dark and mysterious", and..."fishing"? I think it's the moss, but this smells just like a river to me. I'm going to test drive this fully another time, as I'm not sure whether it's "eh" or I absolutely love it, it could go either way.

Received a tester of this with my Shunga order from tkannon a while ago. What a lovely surprise! In the tester: It's pretty close to a dead ringer for a tea I have. This is Yerba Mate Latte from Republic of tea, as a perfume oil, but spicier. On me, wet: I have two absolute favorite smells in the world: petrichor, and the delicious onslaught of smell that happens when you open a spice cabinet. Because of the second one, a lot of the oils I buy have combinations of bunches of different spices in them, and Best Friend (who is my second-opinion nose) thinks that everything smells like Renfaire. I have never agreed with her more. Wet, 13 smells like spices, earth, and chocolate, and it's so interesting and absolutely beautiful--it really is Renfaire without the sweat! The chocolate and spices dominate, but there's definitely an assertive kind of earthiness to it that I don't usually care for but absolutely love here. I hope it keeps this up--it'd be a great cold-weather scent and if this is the only amount I can get my hands on, I'll be in real trouble! On me, dry: The chocolate is mostly gone, replaced by a spicy kind of smokiness close to the skin. My overall impression, which I guess I get from the really authentically Renfaire smell, is "I smell like adventure!" I think it's an amazing cold-weather scent and I'll definitely use up the tester. I'm not sure whether I like it enough to hunt down more, but I guess the good and bad news simultaneously is that ginger and holy basil like me fine--and this is really, really not helping my curiosity about the dark chocolate/tulsi/tumeric/ginger blend from the Box of Chocolates.

Shark Week is over and my accurate testing mojo is back! In the imp: Ooh, that's interesting, kind of soft and lush. I like it! On me, wet: Well, endless improvement over the last time I tested it, when it smelled like burnt plastic. The muguet is really nice, it's one of my favorite smells, and it blends very nicely in Pele. I can't really smell the ginger. I do, however, definitely smell plumeria, which may turn out to be a problem since plumeria works fine on my skin but to me the flower itself just smells exactly like deodorant. Overall, it's extremely pretty in a soft tropical way that sort of evokes sunblock without actually smelling like it, but I don't know if I'd wear it more than once or twice during the summer. On me dry: Eh. It's kind of just...soft flowers. I like it fine objectively but it doesn't do anything for me.

I'm all kinds of heartbroken. In the imp: About the sexiest thing I've ever smelled. On me, wet: There's about half an hour of the most glorious glowing vanilla honey scent in the entire world, along with this edge from the florals that...okay, this is a little weird, because they in no way actually smell like the blossoms in question but they definitely remind me of them? I have no idea how this is accomplished, and I don't get to wonder for long, because... On me, dry: As someone who chronically amps musk to the exclusion of every single other note in a blend, I would really like to express my unending sadness that a bunch of blends have musk unlisted, because I buy them in the first place because I am led to believe that I am safe from this problem. I smell like those gorgeously raunchy flowers, and some vanilla, and a tiny bit of honey--oh wait no i smell like musk. And maybe some flowers kind of. This goes on for two whole hours before the musk finally relents and deigns to let me smell the rest of the blend. At least my wallet is pleased. Ah well. I'll keep the imp because at least there's a point where the musk kindly shuts up and I can actually smell the notes I was excited about. EDIT: Wait, I might be able to wear this after all! I'm starting to suspect that the horrible thing that musk does on my skin is a monthly issue, since a) I tested Womb Furie again last night after a musk disaster and it smelled fine, and I'm testing this again right now just to be sure and it smells like naughty flowers with a touch of honey and a quiet little vanilla note in the background tying it all together. I am so happy, but my wallet...is not.

Thank you so much for the list! I'm afraid I'm still a little perplexed, though--Dorian was amazing on me, and it had vanilla in it. I'd love to figure out which musks are in Dorian so I know which blends won't turn to straight up musk!

Okay, so I'm pretty new to BPAL, and I learned pretty quickly that musks completely overpower everything else in a blend and make me smell gross. This has happened with a lot of the stuff I really loved: Dracul Cordelia Snake Oil (no, really) The Lady of Shalott Bewitched However, I mustered up the courage to try out Dorian when it was frimped to me even though THREE of the notes listed are musks, and it turned out being absolutely stunning. What in the world is going on? Which musks are in Dorian? And are there any scents with unlisted musks that are going to sneak out and annihilate the rest of the blend, like Snake Oil?

Third and last of the "what am I even thinking" test drives tonight, because hell, if I can put on a blend with three musks and not burst into flame, I can handle just the one. Besides, I have a huge thing for "spice cabinet" oils and I just could not let this one go untested, musk and all. In the imp: It kind of just smells exactly like a chai tea latte. I don't have anything else to add. There's something creamy in here with the spices. It's just a watered-down chai tea latte. On me, wet: Oh, that's why everyone likes this so much! It's kind of like Snake Oil without the initial sharp headshop-esque feel, and I like it. It's sweet and earthy and musky and spicy, and I kind of feel like any second now the musk is going to start acting up, but for now it's just adding a lovely kind of sensual warmth to the blend and I feel like this could be one of those scents that I don't think is very "me" at first, but that I then find myself reaching for all the time. On me, dry: Wow, this is just a really lucky night for my skin and musk! Morocco dry is a lovely sweet, spicy scent with none of the BO that musk usually turns into, but...I don't know, I'm not really feeling it. It's a really nice scent, but I don't feel like there's anything particularly special about it? I'll keep the imp, though, for those days where I feel like something spicy and musky but I don't want to deal with the headshop phase of Snake Oil. I don't know what's going on with the musk tonight, but I hope the trend continues!!

I have 2 frimps of this, one from the lab and one from tkannon. Whoever sent it, thank you! ♥ This is the second of the "oh lord, what am I doing" tests tonight. I already have Dorian and its three musks on one hand, so I might as well try Kyoto and its star anise on the other. I'll admit straight out, I'm pretty much only testing this because I'm a Japanese minor and I kind of feel an obligation to try it out even if it's not really my thing. In the imp: Oh my god that's so beautiful. I'm getting a noseful of licorice, which I assume is the anise, but it just adds to the sort of delicate "old"ness I'm getting from the blend overall. If only the star anise wouldn't take over, I could actually see this being a definite 5ml contender. On me, wet: I'm not getting a lot of cherry blossom, just sandalwood and star anise. ...Wow, I like this a LOT more than I did the first time I tested it. The star anise isn't bothering me nearly as much as it did the first time, and I'm kind of adoring this blend now! It's really stately and refined and delicate and kind of, I don't know, noble? The star anise is calming down and the sandalwood and cherry blossom are tempering it and being all soft and quiet and regal, and I really, really like it. On me, dry: This has done a complete 180 from my original impression of it. The anise and what I'm guessing is the sandalwood are blending perfectly and the resulting scent is light but important, delicate and old. It's a beautiful, refined scent that at least for me is really evocative of Japan, and it's going on the "need a bottle" list despite my general dislike of the girlier perfumes.